Homebrew PCBs

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "Stefan Trethan" <stefan_trethan@g...> wrote:
> 
> Or>GN
> 
> >
> > #2, but a machined pin DIP socket and drill out the holes with your
> > drill bit.
> > Then drill one hole in the PCB and then place the drilled socket over
> > it and put in a pin or wire or drill and then use that as a way to
> > align the rest of the holes.
> > Dave
> 
Sounds good on the surface...but to get enough alignment, you'd have
to have holes about the size of the drill bit.  Then you'd have to
align it as well as without the template.  If not, the drill would
break anyway.

With a dremel drill press, it runs out of throat on pretty small boards.

I like the manual x-y table on the drill press.

> 
> Maybe if you wouldn't drill out two corner pins of the socket you could  
> use them
> instead of wire or a drill to align... probably too thin.
> 
> Drilling with HSS drills freehand is MUCH, MUCH easier and faster, and  
> gets good alignment all
> the time. The drill stand makes that so much harder, but carbide won't  
> work without.
> I really must build some viewing mechanism or something.

I don't have nearly the manual dexterity and vision that I had
before I got old.
Not any chance of drilling freehand ;-) and I use carbide that
breaks if you're not careful.

For the CNC drill, I built a gizmo to project crosshairs offset from
the drill.  A little math and I could use the crosshairs on known
positions to align the board.  But it was tedious going back and forth.
It should be a simple matter to do the rotation math to just calibrate
the drill to any board rotation.  Started down that path, but lost
interest before it worked.  I'm getting to where I forget the
name of the subroutine before I have a chance to call it ;-(

Note to self, don't get old...
mike
> 
> ST